Chapter VII - Holding Out for a Hero

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Where have all the good men gone
And where are all the gods?
Where's the street-wise Hercules
To fight the rising odds?
Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed?
Late at night I toss and I turn and dream of what I need

I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night
He's gotta be strong
And he's gotta be fast
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light
He's gotta be sure
And it's gotta be soon
And he's gotta be larger than life

Somewhere after midnight
In my wildest fantasy
Somewhere just beyond my reach
There's someone reaching back for me
Racing on the thunder and rising with the heat
It's gonna take a superman to sweep me off my feet

I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night
He's gotta be strong
And he's gotta be fast
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light
He's gotta be sure
And it's gotta be soon
And he's gotta be larger than life

Up where the mountains meet the heavens above
Out where the lightning splits the sea
I would swear that there's someone somewhere
Watching me

Through the wind and the chill and the rain
And the storm and the flood
I can feel his approach
Like the fire in my blood

I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night
He's gotta be strong
And he's gotta be fast
And he's gotta be fresh from the fight
I need a hero
I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light
He's gotta be sure
And it's gotta be soon
And he's gotta be larger than life
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Vegeta struggled to open his eyes. His vision blurred, then righted itself. He was suspended from the wall, manacled like a common prisoner. His head throbbing, the saiya-jin prince pulled at the chains.

Thousands of volts of electricity shot through his body. He gritted his teeth and continued to attempt to free himself, but the more he struggled, the more painful the electricity got, until Vegeta's body screamed at him to stop. By the time he gave up, his body and clothes were smoking. He dangled limply from the chains.

"I didn't expect the prince of the saiya-jin to give up without a fight." A hissing voice spoke from the shadows.

Vegeta dimly noticed that the dripping that he had thought to be water was actually his own blood. His body had been beaten and slashed, and his heart pounded sluggishly in his ears. He noticed the creature standing in front of him, but didn't recognize it. It was a green-brown color, with a beak, two frontswept horns, a longish neck, blades on its wrists, elbows, knees, and tail. (Author's note: This is a Hork-Bajir from the Animorphs). The flesh around its beak was curved upward in a sort of sinister smirk.

"What do you want?" Vegeta said weakly, "Why did you kidnap me?"

"You seem to be sharing a bond with your new houseguest. I am a Dark Power, such as yourself. In order for me to be the strongest in the universe, I must eradicate the other Dark Powers. I also must grab the five Elemental Gems... and you are my ransom. I will get the gems in exchange for your life." The creature smirked.

"Who are you?" Vegeta whispered as he felt the darkness beckoning to him once again.

"That is for Kakarika to decide." The creature's eyes swirled with several colors. Vegeta felt himself being pulled into their depths. His eyes closed.

The creature chuckled. A hole, black on black, opened up in the floor. The creature was pulled into the black hole, into the Dark Realm.

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Vegeta awoke a while later, his body feeling worse than Frieza's frequent punishments had been when he had been a "mercenary" for him. He looked around, noting the skeletons hanging by their wrists from the wall. At first, he paid them no mind... until he saw one of them. It was an Alcoan, chained to the wall not only by its hands and feet, but by its wings and tail as well. It had a shorter tail and stubbier wings than Kakarika, but it instantly brought back a memory of what had happened earlier.

*Dream Sequence*
Kakarika and the creature were standing in front of him, repeating something they had each said before...

Creature - "In order for me to be the strongest in the universe, I must eradicate the other Dark Powers."

Kakarika - "I was sent to be the balance of light and darkness. There are two waning dark powers in this world. Those two are you, Vegeta and Piccolo. However, your darkness has been giving way to light, thus disrupting the balance."
*End Dream Sequence*

Vegeta was confused. If "the creature" (as he had taken to calling it) wiped out all the other Dark Powers, the balance of power would shift to the Light Side, therefore weakening him. It was like his own old ambition to be the only Super Saiya-jin... but now that he thought of it, it was better to have others at the same level as him, so the pressure wouldn't be entirely on him.

"So, you're confused by my methods?" It was the creature. He materialized out of the shadows, in the form of an Elemental.

***
Author's Note: An Elemental is a spirit, a ghost, if you will. The one I am referring to has been sighted in a place called Leap Castle (pronounced Lep). It has a red face that's decayed and looks as though it was burned. It is about the size of a sheep, with burned black hair sticking out in all directions. Its nose is turned up somewhat like a pig's nose, and its mouth is toothless, bloated. It gives off a sickly sweet odor, like that of burning and decaying flesh, and also gives off a harsh sense of evil.
***

"I won't simply destroy you, I'll 'harvest' your power, use it to strengthen my own Dark Power. You will be dead, but the Dark Power that you hold inside yourself will remain... with me. So will it be with Kakarika... and Piccolo. With the Dark Power concentrated within one mass, it will be strengthened. This will cause the Light Power to be eliminated, sending the universe into a violent upheaval, thus twisting Reality itself. This universe will cease to be, and the Shadow Realm will reign. The other dimensions are intertwined, and thusly, they will follow suit. Every being in every dimension will be trapped in a universe similar to the Dead Zone. There will be no escape. Those able to adapt will become Daemons, a simple term used to describe a creature of darkness. They will serve me, the ruler of the Shadow Realm. It will be glorious... of course, you won't live long enough to see it."

"Neither will you." Vegeta smirked maliciously, "Not when Kakarika gets through with you."

"Yes, yes... the girl. She has the potential to become a problem. I remember her little escapade with the fire... I hadn't expected she'd learn how to use her elemental abilities so quickly, nor did I count on the ability to become that... dragon. And let's not count out the unexpected appearance of that Neo Shenron, manifested from the power of the Dragonballs. But that fire was just the beginning! The beautiful destruction... I will tear apart your world! And there's nothing anyone can do to save you... I will return to the Capsule Corporation, assuming your form. I will then destroy Kakarika while she sleeps." The creature laughed.

"You really think they'll buy it? You may be able to look like me, but you'll never BE like me. I give it one minute before my family and/or friends take you for a fraud and go looking for the real me." Vegeta sneered.

The creature's decayed hand shot forward, becoming a long whip made of pure darkness right before Vegeta's eyes. It wrapped around Vegeta's leg and viciously yanked him from the wall. The chains tore at Vegeta's hands, nearly ripping them out. The creature expanded, becoming a huge mass of darkness with a gaping red mouth and two gleaming red eyes. Vegeta's body hit the cold stone floor. The black whip withdrew from Vegeta's ankle and snaked towards the prince's throat.

"You underestimate me, little princeling. I am capable of far more than you can possibly imagine. I almost regret that you won't live long enough to see the new universe I will create... but imagine! You will be part of perfection!" The creature said triumphantly.

"I know someone who said the exact same thing... but he's dead right now." Vegeta chuckled.

Vegeta's cocky attitude turned to dead fear as he felt the cold tendril of darkness wrap around his throat. With a deadly chuckle, the creature lifted Vegeta up.

"When you lose consciousness, your life force will be absorbed into mine... and then it will begin. I will destroy your universe, plunge it into darkness. Then, little one, I will rule, as I have been destined to. And your family and friends... they will serve... serve ME." The black tendril tightened around Vegeta, and the saiya-jin choked. He tried to struggle, but realized that his energy was still drained from his earlier beating.

Then came the three words that Vegeta found the most beautiful words ever, "On second thought..."

Vegeta felt a sharp pain tear through his body as the creature hurled him to the floor, "Perhaps for now you are more useful to me alive. I have had a vision, just now. This vision prompts me to keep you alive. You are the controller of the tetrahedron, the Fire Gem... is it possible that you are the Fire Elemental? If so, you could be VERY useful to me... I could force you to reveal the location of the Fire Gem, then part of my plan would already be completed... then all I'd need was four gems." The creature was babbling.

"So you're going to just leave me here?" Vegeta croaked, rubbing his throat.

"Yes, for the time being. But know this: I will torture you, every day. I will send a telepathic 'video', if you will, to your friends and family. I will tell them that if they do not surrender Kakarika and the gems to me, I will destroy you." The creature stroked Vegeta's cheek with a smokey tendril.

"Let's put this plan into action. Scream for me, little one..."

"KAKAROTT, KAKARIKA, ANYBODY, HELLLLLLLLLLLLLLP!!!"